


Maybe idk...

by ReadingIsFundamental



Series: Corinne Bailey, The Teenage Standard [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Implied Relationships, Slice of Life sometimes, Slow Burn, as most high schoolers are, cory is kind of figuring herself out, the relationship might change as I write this, uncomfortably slow burn lmao
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-30
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-12-09 01:07:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11658423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReadingIsFundamental/pseuds/ReadingIsFundamental
Summary: High school is weird. Moving schools is weird too. Moving to a different state is even weirder. 15 year old opportunist, Corinne Bailey decides to take her new life in stride and befriends half of Midtown's decathlon team, all while juggling her home life and love of superheros. Maybe she'll get asked to homecoming, maybe she'll pass all her classes, maybe she'll find out that her new friend is the Spiderman. Maybe idk...





	1. I'm Spreading The News, I'm Leaving Today

**Author's Note:**

> uh yeah...I really liked spiderman homecoming and so...here, i guess.

New York is, to say the least, an interesting place to live. The sounds never stop. Ever. Cars honked and people are bustled on the sidewalks 24/7. It’s like the city itself woke up one day and hasn’t gone back to sleep since its creation. Texas never had anything quite like it, 15-year-old Corinne Bailey thought as she sat amongst empty flower pots on the fire escape outside her bedroom window.

An embarrassing mixture of the fear of heights and the thrill of leaving so near to the famed Iron Man sent her heart pounding as she stared off at Stark Tower in the distance, glowing like a beacon of hope in the cool September night, her gardening tools lay abandoned beside her.

“Cory, dinner!” Her mother called from somewhere inside the apartment.

As she got up from her spot and dusted the dirt from the back of her shorts, something caught her eye. Soaring through the air was…a man? Well it looked like a man. She squinted into the night just as he swung once more between the incredibly tall buildings. It was definitely a man, she decided; he had legs in all the right places. Her face lit up as she fought off the urge to squeal.

It…he had to be a superhero. There’s no other explanation.  Or a villain…a chill ran up her spin as she quickly jumped through her window and shut it behind her, suddenly skittish. The safety of the four cream colored walls helped ease her racing heart.  _Let’s just say I saw a hero and leave it at that_ , she shook the negative thoughts away, took off her gardening gloves, and double checked her denim shorts for any leftover dirt before heading to dinner. 

A chorus of greetings met her at the threshold of the modern combination kitchen/dining area. Her father, a tall, thin man in his late 30’s, bustled around the white kitchen, stirring something in a large pot that smelled delicious while her mother sat at the table with her baby sister, Lena. Corinne quickly took her spot at the table, gently patting Lena’s soft blonde curls on the way, and started fiddling with her fork.

“Guess what I saw on the fire escape!” She said, almost too loudly.

“Why were you on the fire escape?” Her father raised a concerned, dark eyebrow, bending around the cabinet door he’d just opened to see her clearer. At this angle Corinne could see the “Kiss The Cook” logo on his apron and she couldn’t help the smile that grew on her face as her mother honked an infectious laugh.

“She just wanted to act like every other teenager in New York, honey.” She waved him off with a neatly manicured hand as he started serving his stew. Her wedding ring, a display of wealth and affection on her father’s part, shone brilliantly in the light, almost blinding Corinne.

“Still, you better be careful, Corey.” A light grimace twisted his face as if every horrible scenario danced through his mind and projected itself in front of him.  

“I don’t think she’s going to throw herself over the railing, Daryl,” her mom subtly rolled her eyes, tossing her tawny hair over a shoulder as she continued to feed Lena.

“Any if you ever have those kinds of thoughts, you can talk to us, honey, I know high school is hard.” Daryl swallowed thickly, trying to recover from his wife’s crass humor. He handed both ladies their bowls before going back to the stove to serve himself some.

 “I start school tomorrow, but it can’t possibly be that bad, don’t worry, Dad!” As he sat down, Corinne had gone back into her story, “Anyway, I think I saw a superhero while I was on the fire escape!!” She gushed and her mom’s smile grew. “Either that or mothman exists and is a lot more man than moth…” her eyebrows knitted together at the thought of a man-sized moth.

“Ooh, was it Thor, please tell me it was Thor?” Her mom interjected.

“Elliott, please,” Daryl whined. Both ladies looked at him as a wry smile took place on his face, “Captain America is waay cooler.” He took a few bites before backtracking, “At least, he was until he went rogue,” he shrugged, “But some would claim that it adds to his charm.”

“Nuh-uh!” Corinne shook her head as she took a spoonful of stew in her mouth, “Iron Man all the way,” She mumbled, with a mouthful of hot broth.

“Slander!” Daryl insisted.

“Either way, I think it’s good that we moved to a decent neighborhood where we have superheroes,” Elliott shrugged, “Beats the Podunk vigilante we had in Dallas.”

The whole family laughed together and Corinne nodded, “Anything’s better than the Lone Star.”

The rest of dinner continued along this line and Corinne went to bed that night mind racing. The city was still very much alive outside her window, made evident by the excessive amount of light pouring through the blinds and the amount of honking from the streets below. Through the ruckus outside, Corinne thought back to the man she saw; a blur of red and blue rushing by before disappearing behind a building. Who could he possibly be?


	2. With Friends Like These yada yada...

If Midtown High School was like any other prep school, everyone will have an air of pseudo-arrogance around them; likeminded in their love or passion for science and technology. Corinne mentally prepared herself for whatever she was about to face down, but as she pushed open the large door, she was surprised to find the main hallway devoid of life. She briefly realized that she was late.

“Shit.” Corinne cursed under her breath as she hightailed it to the office to meet with the girl who was supposed to be showing her around. She rounded a corner and saw the secretary chatting amiably with a black girl who looked to be only slightly older than she was. As Corinne approached, the secretary smiled at her.

“I’m so sorry for making y’all wait, public transportation is wild!” Corinne smiled apologetically and the girl beamed.

“No it’s fine,” She reassured, “I’m Liz, it’s nice to meet you.” The two shook hands. Her hands are crazy soft!

“I’m Corinne.” She introduced herself then added, “Geez, you’re pretty and well put together.”

And she was. Liz looked like she could’ve walked out of a Forever 21 magazine. She wore a casual white blouse and a black skirt that buttoned up the front. Her makeup and hair were flawless and as she smiled at the compliment, Corinne was blinded by her perfect, white teeth.

“Oh that’s so sweet, thank you!”

Liz already had Corinne’s schedule in her hand as they bid the secretary goodbye.

“You’re from Texas, right?” Liz asked as they turned to go to Corinne’s first class. Every now and again the two would walk by a classroom with a teacher getting very passionate about their subject.

Corinne’s cheeks started burning, “Is it that obvious?” Liz laughed and placed a well-meaning hand on her shoulder. She could feel the warmth from her hand through her sweater, making the skin underneath tingle.

“You can barely tell,” She insisted, “But don’t worry, people are going to love your accent.”

“I don’t have an accent.” Corinne laughed when Liz raised her eyebrows and shook her head. “Y’all have the accents, I mean have you heard the way you say ‘bag’ and ‘car’?” She had a list of words that she’d already heard pronounced in a way that made her scrunch up her nose and laugh.

The two walked for what seemed like forever until they Liz came to a stop in front of a classroom, “Alright this is your first period, it should be over within the next thirty minutes, but don’t worry I’m going to meet you right here so I can show you to your 2nd period class!”

“Oh, okay thank you, Liz, I’ll see you then, I guess.” Corinne waved as she left, trying to squash her first-day nerves before it could rear its ugly head once more.

Taking a deep breath and opened the door and stepped inside the lab, causing every head in the room to swivel in her direction. Jesus, did they practice that? The teacher, a kind looking older woman in her mid-50s, stopped speaking and turned towards her, “Oh you must be Miss Bailey,” She waved her inside and ushered her inside while she went to her desk to get the roll sheet.

All conversation in the classroom ceased as she took her first steps in the room. Never one for being shy, she gave the room a smile and a wave. Upon the realization that they wouldn’t be able to get a rise out of her, a couple of people lost interest and returned to their phones as the teacher approached her once more.

“I’m Ms. Kirkland, welcome to chemistry, Corinne!” Ms. Kirkland introduced herself and Corinne nodded. “Go on ahead and pick an empty seat next to someone and they can get you all caught up.”

“Nice to meet you,” Corinne eyed the classroom to find the ideal table, “I can sit anywhere?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Ms. Kirkland nodded while glancing at the sheet on her decorated clipboard.

A wry smile inched its way onto Corinne’s lips, “What if I want to sit at your desk?” A couple of chuckles rang throughout the room, but Ms. Kirkland just rolled her eyes with a smile.

“Alright Comedian, go ahead and take a seat at the open table in the back left; there should be a seat there.”

Corinne nodded and scanned the classroom for the spot. The lab tables sat two on either side and one at each end, and every table was filled except for one. Thank you, American education system. She made her way towards the empty seat and sat her backpack down beside it.

“What are we working on today?” Corinne asked, craning her neck to get a glimpse of the mixtures on the tables. There were multiple copies of papers filled with instructions and pictures of chemicals strewn about the table so everyone could read them. She glanced up when no one answered her, only to be met with a pair of brown eyes. She backtracked and sat her butt down on the stool behind her, saying a quick thank you to whoever was listening that she didn’t fall flat on her face. The eyes belonged to a handsome, if not young faced, guy who looked a little confused by her presence. She finally broke his gaze to glimpse at the table’s occupants. “Oh shit, that was rude sorry, I’m Corinne.”

An attractive girl sat on the other far side with her sleeves rolled up to her elbows, and all her hair pulled back into a ponytail, sans the pseudo bangs that framed her face. “Michelle.” She nodded. Alright, she’s not one for conversation, that’s fine. She noticed the books Michelle had stack next to her and Corinne made a mental note to ask her what she was reading later.

“I’m Ned,” chimed a large Polynesian-esque guy wearing a shirt with some kind of Star Wars joke proudly displayed on the front. “And this is Peter.” He gestured to the white boy sitting next to him, aka Brown Eyes McHandsomeFace, who was also wearing a shirt with a pun graphic.

“Hi Corinne,” Peter gave her a weak smile and she returned it full force, completely unaware she was in the way of him mixing a secret concoction. “We’re going to mix these two ingredient and jot down our observations. Very typical chemistry lab type…stuff.”

“Is that the technical term?” Corinne laughed, he seemed…nervous?

“I only speak in technical terms.” Peter replied and a gentle laugh left his lips. That would be the perfect way to describe him, Corinne thought. Gentle. He seemed sweet, and she could tell that she was going to like him.

The rest of the class period went smoothly, no hitches, and no more harassing the teacher on Corinne’s part. She waved goodbye to her new acquaintances as she left to wait for Liz to show her to her next class.

“Hey!” Liz called, and Corinne turned with a smile to see her approaching. “How was your class?”

“It was fine, I actually met a couple of cool people!” Corinne explained as she moved to grab her schedule out of her bag.

“Hey Liz,” She heard Peter’s voice from behind her and looked up in time to catch his lovesick look. Oh, they must be dating, how sweet! She briefly felt a twinge of jealousy, of course everyone has someone when they’ve known each other for so long. She was still the newcomer, no friends on her radar, and especially NOT a boyfriend.

“Oh hey Peter, I didn’t know you’d be in Corinne’s class,” Liz smiled, “Did you get the chance to meet?”

“Yeah, Peter’s really cool,” She motioned towards Peter, “He defended me against a beaker explosion, and then when someone tried to give me lip, he tore the lab table in two and beat them with one half of it.”

Liz and Peter both stared laughing, urging her to continue, “But he wasn’t without restraint, because when the other guy refused to fight, Peter backed down and showed mercy. It goes without saying that he’s a cool guy, Liz.” Corinne shrugged nonchalantly.

“Yep that’s me, just your average, cool guy,” Peter folded his arms across his chest, giving him the appearance of being tough as Liz continued laughing.

“Hey Peter, wanna help me finish building the Lego Death Star tonight?” Ned asked and Peter simply gave him a look that begged for better timing. Liz’s laughter dissolved into sporadic bursts of giggles, but tried to hide it behind her hand.

“Oh you have the Lego Death Star?” Corinne’s eyebrows shot up and Ned mimicked her, borderline shocked to see the new girl had decent taste. “My mom and tried building one of those together, cause she’s obsessed with Star Wars. Unfortunately, my little cousin ended up eating some of the pieces so we never got to finish it.” She shook her head as if watching the event happen before her eyes once more before pointing her finger dramatically, “Finish it before someone comes along and eats your pieces!” She halfheartedly warned.

“Noted.” Ned laughed. “It’s taken forever to build because I always wait for Peter to be able to join me, but he’s always too busy with his Stark Internship.”

All eyes were now on Peter, who shifted a little uncomfortably.

“Holy shit, you’re interning at the Stark tower, that’s so awesome!” Corinne gushed, “Back in Dallas I took a summer internship at Microsoft, and play tested a couple of games at Gearbox, but that blows in comparison with Stark Industries.”

Peter puffed up with pride as Corinne stroked his ego, “Yeah…I mean it’s whatever,” He shrugged. Corrinne cursed his humble nature. “Microsoft is really cool, too!”

“You’re lucky to be dating someone so smart, Liz.” Corinne mentioned offhandedly as she adjusted the straps on her backpack.

When she glanced back up, Peter’s eyes had grown cartoonishly mortified, and Corinne knew immediately that she said something wrong. Sweat coated her palm and her stomach dropped, so much for good impressions.

“We’re…uh, we’re not…..no…uh” Peter squeaked and even Ned looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Liz’s cheeks burned but she kept her composer, “Oh Peter and I aren’t dating, Corinne, we’re just friends.”

Now it was Corinne’s turn to be embarrassed. She turned bright red and mumbled an, “Oh…sorry.”

“I’m gonna head to class,” Peter muttered and booked it in the opposite direction. Upon realizing that he got left behind, Ned followed his friend.

Once they were gone, Liz stared at the ground.

Corinne winced and brought a hand up to rub the back of her neck nervously, “Sorry about that Liz, I just saw the way he looked at you and I just assumed.”

_Assuming makes an ass out of you and me_ , she reminded herself and decided to never bring it up again.

“Yeah, he’s sweet, but I don’t know,” She chuckled, staring off in the direction that he disappeared.

Once again, Corinne was struck with how beautiful Liz is, forcing her to come to terms with the fact that she looked like someone that stumbled out of a Goodwill at approximately midnight with no sense of direction. Her grey, hand-me-down cable knit sweater had a couple of holes at the bottom and her jeans were a couple years old at best, and should’ve probably been thrown out by now. Looking down at her feet, she noticed her favorite fabric sneakers had gained another stain. Probably from spilling the first hotdog-stand hotdog she had eaten when her family first arrived in New York down the front of her outfit. Great.

For once, Corinne wished she had one of those moms that stopped her from leaving the house looking like she crawled out of a dumpster. This morning Elliott had simply smiled, told her she looked comfy, and took her picture to commemorate her first day at her new school before ushering her out of the house. 

The sound of Liz’s voice broke Corinne out of her trance and when she looked up she noticed they were at a different classroom.

“-and this is your second period class,” She motioned towards the door, “I hope you were paying attention through the walk here, it gets pretty confusing.”

Corinne’s blood ran cold. She was doing the exact opposite the entire time. “Yeah, I’m sure I’ll get it eventually, ha…” She trailed off awkwardly into a cough to cover up her nervous laughter. Liz just smiled back and reassured her before taking her leave.

The rest of the day continued in the same vein until lunch time. Liz had met Corinne outside her classroom and they walked to lunch together. It wasn’t until they reached the cafeteria that Liz told her that she was in charge of homecoming committee. Which meant she’d be too busy to sit and eat lunch with her.

Great.

 

“No problem, really!” Corinne waved her off, “I made a couple of friends in my classes that I can sit with.” She lied. Liz smiled brightly and went off about her business.

Corinne scanned the room for any familiar faces. About halfway towards the back she saw Ned and Peter sitting and staring intensely in her direction. A little weirded out, she started looking down at herself to see if she had anything on her. Nope. She turned around to see if anything was behind her and…yep. There was Liz smiling at a couple of her friends as they discussed homecoming. Corinne rolled her eyes before headed to the lunch line.

After purchasing the saddest meal she’d ever seen, she weaved her way through the tables until she stood in front of Peter and Ned. The latter looked up at her with his eyebrows raised.

“Can I sit with y’all?” Corinne asked gently, starting to feel eyes on her back. Peter finally looked up from his arduous task of ogling the homecoming committee.  

“Yeah of course!” Ned gestured to the multitude of empty seats and Peter nodded.

“How’s your first day going?” Peter asked, and Corinne could still feel the hint of awkward air around the two of them from earlier. At least he was trying to put it behind him and be civil.

“Oh it’s been fine, everyone’s been really helpful,” She nodded her head in Liz’s direction, “Liz especially. I don’t know what I’d do without her today.”

“She’s pretty great.” Peter agreed dreamily and Ned nudged him into alertness, “So…uh, how are you liking New York?”

Nice save Peter.

“No lie, I thought that by coming to live in New York I was going to get shanked in some alleyway, but so far it’s been really nice!” Corinne confessed with a shrug as she opened her chocolate milk.

“Well, you only just got here, there’s still time.” Came a dry voice from the other end of the table. Michelle plopped her stuff down and then she followed suit before opening a book and sticking her nose in it. Corinne couldn’t help but laugh.

“You’re right, maybe I just need to start walking down more alleys.” Corinne could see a brief smile flash on Michelle’s face. Why is she sitting so far away? “Michelle, why don’t you come down here and sit with us?”

Michelle’s face contorted into something that was almost a wince, but not quite. Corinne rolled her eyes, “Come on, we don’t bite!” She said, “Well, at least I don’t. I don’t know about these two,” she gestured towards the boys across from her, who laughed, “Seems like the kind of thing Peter would be into.” She teased, throwing a wink his way.

Ned nearly spat out his milk as he laughed and Peter couldn’t help but crack up as he tried to hide his blush.

“Buy me dinner first,” Peter said, acting scandalized.

By this time, Michelle had inched a little bit closer, if only to follow the conversation easier, “It’s always the quiet ones.”

 Corinne found herself laughing easily at this table of mix-matched nerds and at this moment she knew coming to New York was a good idea.

 The lunch period passed quickly and, much to Corinne’s dismay, was over before she knew it.


	3. Gym Class, Shmym Class

PE was something Corinne was mildly good at, having played volleyball and soccer for her school back in Texas. What she was not prepared for, however, were the awkward videos from Captain America and the blasé Coach Wilson.

He literally doesn’t give a shit.

Corinne ran around the indoor track twice before realizing that nobody else was doing anything. After slowing down on her second lap she spied Peter and Ned. Peter was doing sit ups like it was his job! Maybe he had to start working out because of bullies, like Captain America…or maybe he just likes fitness. Buff nerds have gotten more common since cosplay became a widespread thing. Corinne felt her abs hurt just watching him and chose to sit down on the bleachers with Liz and a couple of her friends.

“Corinne, marry, fuck, kill: the Avengers.” Liz smiled her blinding smile, having just finished her own list, and Corinne had to physically stop herself from wincing.

“Uh, let’s see…” Corrine thought about it. Captain America had good ideals and was a hottie with a body, but Iron Man has incredible wealth and genius. Hawkeye seems quiet and reserved and Thor seemed to be in a rumored relationship with some girl out west, and Corinne is a lot of things but she is not a homewrecker. Then there’s the Hulk.

A sly smile spread across her face, “Okay, so marry Iron Man; because money. Kill Cap for drama, and fuck Hulk.”

The entire group made a noise of disgust, and one of the guys raised an eyebrow at her.

“Why?” he asked.

Corrine just wiggled her eyebrows and the group burst out into giggles. Liz shook her head, still laughing, “That’s so wrong!!”

“What about Spider Man?” the guy asked and Corinne saw a bit of movement on the floor. She briefly glanced over to see Ned acting like he wasn’t listening. She furrowed her brows.

“Spider Man?”

“You haven’t heard of him?” Liz asked and the guy beside her rolled his eyes.

“Liz has a crush on him, I swear!”

“I do not, but you seriously haven’t seen the Youtube videos?” Liz asked, already pulling up her phone to show the younger girl. Corinne inched closer to the screen and watched a guy in a red and blue suit was doing all kind of acrobatics on camera. He then shot something out of his wrist and started swinging around.

Corinne’s eyes grew wide, “I’ve seen him before!”

Liz nodded, “Yeah, he’s all over Youtube!”

Trying really hard to resist the urge to make a joke about being on the ‘web’, Corrine shook her head, “No, no, like I’ve seen him swinging with my own two eyes.”

The group start hunching around her as if she were telling a great tale. A chorus of “When?”, “Why?”, and “Where?” echoed around her.

“Well, the other night I was on my fire escape because I’ve never stood on one before and so I took my chance and I saw this guy swinging and flying through the night.” Corrine remembered, “He looked really graceful and I think that’s really neat.”

Suddenly Ned’s voice cuts through the group, “Peter knows Spider Man.” He called, “Through the, uh, Stark internship.”

Peter’s eyes grew wide and he whispered something to Ned, to try and get him to shut up, but another voice cut through.

“Well if Penis Parker really does know Spider Man, then he’ll be at Liz’s party tomorrow night, right?” Flash zipped down from the rope and stood cockily off to the side.

“P-party?” Peter stammered and Corinne noticed a distinct difference in his personality from usual. Normally he’s ready to joke and tease, right now he seemed…vulnerable. He was acting as if he were, well, hiding something. She chalked it up to how he normally accts around Liz, but something seemed off. “Uhh…I,” He said smartly.

Liz rolled her eyes, “Even if he doesn’t show up, I’d love for you guys to come,” She addressed Peter and Ned just as Coach Wilson blew his whistle to signal that it was time to hit the locker rooms. “You too, Corinne.” She said with a smile and Corinne nodded in response as they walked towards the girl’s locker room.

Never being one for parties, Corinne had told Liz that she would have to see, but meeting the Spiderman would be an interesting turn of events. Maybe…just maybe she’ll consider it.


	4. New School Same Shit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this was highly dramatized, but the few parties i went to back in highschool had too much drama for their own good. But that's because they were after-parties for theater lmao aNYWAY...

The next day progressed so slowly, Corinne was sure the children she passed on the street on her way to school were fully grown now. It’s the same, giddy feeling you get on Christmas Eve or the night before your birthday. You can’t sit still, you can’t concentrate, and you start feeling like nothing else really matters besides the fact that there’s a party tonight and Spiderman might be there.

In all her classes, Corinne could detect a faint buzz of excitement. There was talk of how it will happen. Will he burst through the door with flash and style, or will he climb in through a window and wait until someone notices him?

“What do you guys think?” Corinne asked as she sat down at the lunch table. Peter’s head snapped in her direction, and she almost jumped. Someone was on edge it seemed.

“Think about what?” He asked, talking so fast she could almost barely understand him.

“How Spiderman is going to make his entrance at the party tonight?” She elaborated before taking a bite out of the cardboard-esque pizza slice the cafeteria offered. She grimaced as it slithered down her throat and then set it aside in favor of her chocolate milk.

Peter and Ned shared a look before Ned started talked over him, “What I think he’ll do is come through a window halfway through the party, or swing through some open door, and land in the middle of the dancefloor.”

Corinne watched as Peter laughed awkwardly before locking eyes with her. He cleared his throat, “What do, uh, what do you think he’ll do, Corinne?”

Hearing her name come out of his mouth was almost electric. Something kickstarted her heart and it started beating faster. _That’s stupid_ , she thought. _It’s just Peter, and it’s just my name. People say it every day you lame ass._

Trying to ignore her stupid, hormonal body, she thought about it, making an exaggerated thinking face. “He’s probably a busy dude,” she started, and both boys were suddenly interested, “I mean, if he only comes out at evening and nighttime, then he’s got stuff to do in the daytime. So if he only has time to patrol at night, I don’t really think he should come to a party and waste his time while he could be keeping watch over the city,” she finished and took a swig of milk. “Does that make sense?”

Peter nodded, “Yep, makes perfect sense, I don’t think he’ll be there either.”

Ned shook his head in disagreement, “But who knows?”

“Exactly,” Corinne agreed as she tried the pizza again. It’s still bad.

Peter laughed at her cringing face, “Only get the pizza on Wednesdays, when the make it on Friday they just reheat it up from the previous days.” He advised.

“That’s so fucked.” Corinne had half a mind to spit the food out.

“No that’s just the American education system,” Michelle chimed in as she sat down next to Corinne, leaving a healthy distance between them.

“Michelle, I get the feeling that you’re kind of a rebel without a cause, and I dig that.” Corinne mentioned and Michelle smiled slightly. Well, it was more of a smirk. Either way it was short lived, and Michelle was back to ignoring the table for her book.

“Oh, Michelle, are you going to Liz’s party?” Corinne asked.

“Maybe, probably not, well...maybe, why?” Michelle responded curiously and Corinne felt a little deflated.

“To be honest, I’m nervous trying to get around the city on my own, I was hoping I could have someone to go with, but I understand!” She waved the thought away and Michelle just stared at her. Corinne briefly wished she could find out what was going on in her head.

The rest of the day went by as slowly as the first half and it was just as boring. Corinne sat through physics unhappily, waiting for the bell to ring so she could dart from class. Having gone to parties back in Texas, she knew the drill. Pick an outfit, hate that outfit, pick another outfit, hate that one and decide the first one was better. You put the first one back on and then hate it again but you look at the clock and realize that it’s almost time to go so you toss your hair in a braid and throw on some makeup and then you’re out the door feeling a little sour and underdressed until you get there and realize that you might’ve overdressed. Then you spend the evening sweaty and wishing you’d stayed home.

Sounds like the perfect night.

When the bell rings, Corinne picks up her bag and heads through the door like she planned, but suddenly her phone goes off. Sliding her thumb across the screen, she picked up.

“Hey honey, I’m on my way home right now, your dad should be a little late though, so I was thinking we could have a girl’s night tonight?” Her mom asked, and Corinne scrunched up her face. Why on earth does she have the worst timing?

“Mom, I told you about Liz’s party yesterday, right?” She asked. She remembered her mom giving her a thumbs up and saying something about how her daughters all grown up and making friends in New York.

“Oh that’s right,” Her mom replied with a laugh, “Don’t mind me, I’m such a scatterbrain, come on home and I’ll help you pick out an outfit then!”

“Thank mom, I’ll see you then!”

Corinne rolled her eyes and left class, and waiting just outside was Michelle. She had and arm folded across her chest and in her other hand she had her book.

“Hey Michelle, what’s up?” Corinne greeted her and Michelle lowered her book for a split second to spare a glance her way.

“Are you still going to Allan’s party?” she asks, finally marking her spot in her book and locking eyes with Corinne, who nodded.

“Yep,” she nodded, “Did you ever decide if you’re gonna go?”

Michelle narrowed her eyes in thought, “Yeah, I think I’ll check it out, I’ll see you there, I guess.”

She then turned and started walking the other way, leaving behind a confused Corinne. “Okay, see you?”

The walk home went by rather quickly and she opened the door to her apartment to find her mom singing along to some children’s show with Lena in her lap. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Sarah drawing at the table.

“I’m home!” She called and Elliott stood, Lena in tow, to greet her.

“Hey Cory, let’s go pick you out an outfit,” She replied and began leading the way to Corinne’s room. “What kind of vibe are you wanting to go for tonight? Cool and hipster-y? Classy and cute?” She asked, going directly for her closet. Immediately she backed away from the mountain of clothes at her feet, “Corinne Fern Bailey, we just moved here and your closet’s already a pit!”

Corinne shrugged and pretended not to see it, “Well, you said it yourself, we just moved here.”

“Yeah, uh-huh, we’re going to work on that this weekend.” Her mom replied, reaching for something in her closet, but Corinne gently touched her arm, suddenly afraid of what she’d pick.

“Hey mom, I think I’ve got it, actually…” She could tell her mom was a little hurt by the suggestion, but it was time to let her do her own thing.

“Oh…yeah, I gotcha, I’ll just be out here.” She motioned towards the door as she turned to head out.

Left to her own devices, Corinne picked out a pair of light denim shorts, a casual low-cut shirt, and a cardigan over the top. She put on a little bit of makeup and threw her hair in a messy braid before looking at the clock. Shit it was already 7:15. The party started at 7.

“Nothing wrong with being fashionably late,” She eyed herself in her mirror and pride swelled inside her. The shorts hugged her hips perfectly and the top showed a bit of skin, but with the help of the sweater, it added a little bit of innocence back into the outfit. It was perfect.

Corinne grabbed her phone and slung a purse on her shoulder before heading out.

“Bye mom, bye Sarah, bye Lena!” She called and left before her mom could get a word in edgewise.

_

If she was held at gunpoint and could only describe Liz’s house in a few words, Corinne would say The Cullens. The large house seemed almost misplaced in the suburban neighborhood with it’s chic, glass walls and perfect hedges. She half expected to be greeted by a family of stylish vampires.

The party was in full swing by the time she had arrived and paid her Lyft driver. Sparing a glance at her phone she drew in a deep breath, almost an hour late. Nice. She walked up to the massive door and let herself in, and was almost immediately scooped up by Liz in a big hug.

“I’m so glad you could make it!” She squealed, then held her at arms-length to look her over, “Look at you, I love your outfit.”

Corinne’s cheeks flushed pink under the older girl’s affection, “Th-thanks Liz, you look great too,” she muttered and finally looked at her surroundings. “Your house is gorgeous!!”

“Thanks, my parents are very proud of it.” She replied, rolling her eyes. “Come on in and enjoy yourself, there’s drinks and snacks in the kitchen and Flash is DJ-ing in the living room.” She explained, “Feel free to explore, just make sure you save me a dance!” She laughed and Corinne felt the receding blush come back full force as Liz left to attend to some other partygoers.

 _You need to calm down, Liz is just being friendly. You’re being weird_ , she told herself as she went to check out the snack table.

“Corinne, is that you?” a familiar voice asked. She looked up to see Ned standing at the other end of the table. He was wearing a very interesting hat.

“Hi Ned, I like your hat!” She greeted with a smile, “I’m glad you guys actually came, at least I assume Peter came with you?” She looked around, trying to find him. Through the wall of windows behind him, she could see a swimming pool abandoned due to the cool breeze of the oncoming fall.

Suddenly Ned seemed nervous, “Oh…yeah he’s in the bathroom right now, I think.”

Corinne shrugged and started moving to the beat of a song that came on. An idea popped in her mind, “This is a great song, do you want to dance, Ned?”

“Wh-what?” He asked incredulously, looking like a deer caught in headlights. “Me? Dance with you? Now?”

“Yeah, why not?” She suddenly felt a little self-conscious by his nervousness.

“I…uh, I’m not a good dancer,” He admitted, making her self-consciousness fade away. She smiled at him.

“You don’t have to be good to have fun!” She told him before grabbing him by the hand and dragging him with her towards the source of the music. Michelle peeked around the corner of the kitchen just in time to lock eyes with Corinne. “Oh Michelle, come dance with us!”

Michelle shrugged, “I guess I’ve got nothing to lose.” She followed the two to where other kids were dancing awkwardly to the music. Corinne brought them to the middle of the floor and started bobbing along with the beat. Michelle raised an eyebrow, a smirk resting on her lips. Ned started nodding his head in time with the song.

Throwing caution to the wind, Corinne took both of Michelle’s hands and started moving her body along to the song, “Come on MJ, get jiggy with it!” She called over the music, laughing at herself before letting her hands go. Michelle rolled her eyes and swayed from side to side in a barely-there way to pacify her.

Turning to Ned, she popped her shoulders back and forth in a homebrewed dance move that looked like it belonged in a music video from the 90’s. A flush covered her face when she realized that she was the only one dancing. Cool anxiety pooled in the pit of her stomach until Ned started imitating her and she smiled, reassured. 

All eyes were on the trio. Some jumped up and joined on the makeshift dancefloor and others stood to the side to continue their conversations, but kept a close eye on the dancing bodies slowly encroaching. Corinne was the new girl in town. Nobody knew who she was, or what she was actually like; she was a wild card. Everyone could agree, however, that she could get excite a crowd.

Wandering up to Flash’s setup, the bass booming dangerously close to her eardrums, Corinne yelled a song title over the music and the dj complied. When the first song faded into the next she let out a whoop, eliciting a cheer from the crowd.  Looking out into the sea of faces, she saw Ned start heading back to the snack table and Michelle had mysteriously disappeared, probably somewhere brooding. The creeping worry she felt that her new friends weren’t having fun was quickly overpowered by an intense rush of adrenaline.

 _This is good_ , she thought. _A party in New York is just like any old party in Texas._

People were cheering and dancing, living and enjoying the atmosphere, urging her on as she danced, and suddenly she noticed the slow stream of solo cups appearing in peoples’ hands. A raucous cheer came from the kitchen as a group of guys from the football team started pouring drinks.

Half an hour later she found herself in the middle of the crowded living room, moving her body in time with a stranger’s. Looking back she saw a handsome boy, definitely a senior, dancing behind her. One of his hands found its way to her hip and in the other he held onto a red cup. The rough of his khaki shorts rubbed against her bare thighs and her stomach dropped. Every possible scenario ran through her head. That was her cue to leave the dancefloor. Heart beating against her chest, she threw him a wink before scurrying away, leaving him to grind on someone else.

After pushing past the sweaty wall of bodies, she popped out on the other side of the house, back to the safety of Ned and snacks.  Once Ned was in view, her heart slowed and she realized how hot she’d gotten. She wiped the sweat from her upper lip on her sleeve, feeling thankful that setting spray exists.

“How do you do it?” Ned asked before stuffing some chips in his mouth.

“Do what?” She replied, still trying to calm down.

“Just jump in a crowd,” He wasn’t vindictive, just curious.

“This isn’t my first rodeo,” Corinne offered him a smile. She had never really seen him without Peter, and to be honest he looked almost lost. He laughed.

“Do you say that because, you know, you’re from Texas?” He joked, earning him a light punch in the shoulder. Corinne smirked at him and grabbed a handful of chips.

“You got jokes, Ned,” she pointed at him with a chip before eating it, “Girls dig that.”

“I’m gonna go get some air, it’s too hot in here,” She took another handful of chips and left through the back door to where the pool sat unused, almost hauntingly so. The party sounded so distant outside and it calmed her as she walked the edge of the pool. There was something about putting yourself on the line that was something of a subdued thrill, mixed with the wind blowing on the cooling sweat on her back, that sent tingles dancing down her spine.

Peter Parker stepped further back onto the rooftop as soon as Corinne stepped outside. _Shit, no one was supposed to come outside._  He watched her from the shadows for a bit. She looked good tonight. He admired her legs and the curve of her backside before being weirded out by himself. What kind of guy watches girls from rooftops. He shook the thought from his head and prepared to make his entrance when an explosion sounded in the distance.

 

“What the fuck was that?” She yelled and he had to stop himself from laughing as Corinne ran back inside the house. He slipped the mask on his face and took off towards the source of the noise.

Inside, Corinne had explained the noise she heard to Ned, “It wasn’t anything like a gunshot, believe me, I’ve heard enough of those in my lifetime,” she spoke so fast her mouth got dry. Her heart raced again, “Do you think something’s wrong?” Fear knit her eyebrows together.

“Well, if we’re lucky, it’ll be small and Spiderman will be taking care of it,” He replied, not incredibly worried about it. Something did seem to be off though. Where the hell is Peter?

“Ned, is Peter okay?” She asked, but before he could respond, Flash’s voice cut through the music.

“He…uh…stepped out?” He didn’t sound too sure.

“Now where on earth is Spiderman?” Flash's voice cut through the music, the proximity of his mouth to the microphone distorting his voice. There was a unanimous uttering from the crowd. Corinne locked eyes with Ned, worried what was about to happen. Ned had tried calling Peter multiple times, but to no avail.

“Unless,” Flash paused for dramatic effect, “Penis Parker was lying!” People started laughing at the nickname and Corinne felt her blood boil. Even if she didn’t know where Peter was, or if he even knew Spiderman, there’s no need to be rude.

“I say PENIS you say PARKER!” Flash chanted and the crowd echoed him.

“PENIS!”

“PARKER!”

“Dude, you probably don’t want to come back,” she heard Ned say into the phone, “Listen.” He held the phone up so the other end could hear the chanting. Nobody deserves that, Corinne decided and walked back through the crowd of people towards Flash. Behind her she could hear Ned talking to Peter, “Hang on dude, I think Cory’s about to defend your honor.”

“Hey, why don’t you lay off, Flash?” She called over the chanting. Suddenly all eyes were on her and her stomach dropped but she continued, “M-making fun of others doesn’t automatically make you cool.” Her words fell on deaf ears as a few people started snickering. “It’s not like it’s gonna make you smarter than him.”

Flash’s face slackened. She had hit the nail on the head. The crowd let out an ‘ooh’ and a couple of people laughed. Trying to save his reputation, Flash bit his lip, “Oh my god,” Flash laughed in her face, “You’re in love with Penis Parker, aren’t you, new girl.” He accused. Corinne scrunched up her nose and shook her head.

“No,” she replied, “I just think th-,”

“The new girl loves Penis Parker!” Flash announced, the crowd, probably 85% drunk at this point, cheered and laughed. Corinne’s face flushed. “You love Penis Parker but dance with other guys, what’s up with that, New Girl?” Someone in the crowd shouted at the top of their lungs.

“Whorey Cory!”

She clenched her fists, but nodded, trying to take it in stride. “Oh yeah, that’s real original, it’s not like I haven’t heard that one before.” She brushed it off but tears pricked at the back of her eyes. Don’t show fear, she reminded herself, but her lip started trembling and suddenly she was back in Dallas, standing outside the principal’s office. Everyone’s eyes burning her skin. Her lungs burned and she couldn’t get any oxygen.  

Corinne pushed her way out of the crowd and ran as fast as she could to the front door, leaving the continued chanting behind her. Liz stood talking with a couple of seniors. She had a solo cup in her hand, but she still radiated elegance. She looked like a beacon of hope. Corinne swiped at the tears threatening to fall.

“Great party, Liz, I gotta go home, though,” She said goodbye and left without giving the her an opportunity to reply.

The cool night air hit her skin for the second time that night as she ran down the suburban street, not necessarily having a destination, just knowing she needed to run. It had been almost 6 months since leaving her old school, but she could still feel the vindictive looks passed her way between classes. It was the jeers, the cackles, the advances that had her withdraw from public school in the first place, going into online school for the rest of her freshman year.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t realize the change of scenery. Corinne looked up and found herself in a park, the familiar crunching of woodchips underneath her sneakers easing the overwhelming concoction of emotions pooling in her stomach. She took a seat on one of the swings as she organized a Lyft to pick her up.

“Corinne?” A muffled voice asked and it sounded a hell of a lot of Peter Parker, but to Corinne’s surprise, she saw the same red and blue outfit from the youtube videos.

“You’re the Spiderman!”


	5. Hometown Hero

“Corinne?” A muffled voice asked and it sounded a hell of a lot of Peter Parker, but to Corinne’s surprise, she saw the same red and blue outfit from the Youtube videos. He was sitting in a tree closest to the swing set.

“You’re the Spiderman!” She exclaimed, but almost instantly narrowed her eyes, “How do you know my name?”

She examined him then. He was built for his stature and she couldn’t help but admire his waistline. He almost looked like a Dorito. The comparison made her want to laugh, taking away some of the sting of the party. She watched as he nervously scratched the back of his neck and he nervously muttered something.

“Ned, do you know Ned?” he asked, but shook his head at himself, “Anyway, Ned, one of Peter’s friends, told Peter that you had run away from a party and I was in the neighborhood so they asked me to look out for you.”

“That’s…sweet of them, I’ll have to thank them later,” A small smile graced her features and Peter felt his breath hitch. In the short amount of time he knew Corinne, he had seen many different types of smiles on her lips, but this one felt different. It felt like a secret. Something the only the two of them shared. Well, Corinne and Spiderman.

“If you were in the neighborhood,” She started, quirking an eyebrow up in question, “does that mean you were on your way to the party?”

“Uhh…” he smartly replied. Maybe he should consider taking an improv class to improve his acting skills. He settled on telling a half-truth, “Yeah, I meant to show up earlier, but there was some superhero-ing I had to attend to.”

“The explosion earlier!” her head snapped up in his direction, “Right? That was you?”

“Yeah.” He replied, then raised his hand up in thought, “Well, I didn’t cause the explosion. I went to investigate and…hey, this is classified superhero business.” He stopped, the eyes on his suit narrowing. Corinne was in awe of the suit he wore.

“How did you do that?” She asked, pointing at his face. Spiderman placed a hand on his face, unsure what she meant.

“What?”

“The eyes on your suit, they narrowed, that was super cool!” She explained and Peter’s pride swelled.

“Thanks, Tony Stark helped me make it,” He lied. She wouldn’t have to know.

“You know Tony Stark!?” She asked, hopping off the swing in excitement. The mention of her idol’s name seemed to wipe the memory of the night away completely. “Are you an Avenger?”

“Yeah, we’re pretty close,” he lied nonchalantly, “And of course I’m an Avenger!”

Corinne had to stop herself from squealing audibly, “That’s so cool, just wait until I tell my family I met an Avenger!”

“I’ll admit,” he shrugged before admitting, “It _is_ pretty cool.”

“How do your webs work?” She asked, leaning against the swing set, curious eyes dead set on him.

“Oh it’s a chemical mixture I created myself,” He explained, “It comes through here and…” He stopped when he noticed she couldn’t see anything he was doing, “Hang on.” Spiderman slung a web to the swing set and expertly pulled himself from the tree branch, landing about a breath away from her feet.

Corinne took a startled step backward and her back bumped into the pole of the swing set. “Anyway,” he continued, shoving his glove in her face to demonstrate, “it comes through here and reacts when it touches oxygen and it becomes sticky.”

She watched in awe as he shot webs on the metal bars of the swings and the seat of the slide on the other side of the park. There was something about him that was endearing, and she couldn’t help but feel closer to him. At the same time, she felt weird that he was disclosing this kind of information.

“Do you tell all your secrets to strange girls you meet in parks?” he didn’t have to see the smirk on her face to know it was there. Under his mask, he blushed.

“Y-you’re not strange.” He told her in earnest.

“You must’ve missed half the upper class of Midtown chanting about me, but I appreciate it,” She let out a self-deprecating laugh.

“Hey,” he said, reaching out to rest a reassuring hand on her upper arm. His grip was strong, but not forceful and she could feel the heat radiating from underneath his suit. “What you did was…amazing. Peter doesn’t feel like he has a lot of friends, and to have someone defend him-,”

“Or attempt to anyway,” She interjected.

“Either way,” he conceded, “I’m sure he’ll be thankful…” he trailed off upon seeing a car pull up to the park. Corinne spared a disappointed glance in that direction. Spiderman broke contact first and Corinne found herself missing the heat.

“My ride’s here.” She said lamely and gestured to the vehicle waiting in the street.

“Yeah…” he muttered. She turned to take her leave, but he took ahold of her wrist, “You know, if you want, I could…I could take you home.”

She turned and he watched her bite her lip in thought. Everything her parents had taught her about talking to, and allowing strangers to walk her home seemed to tell her to say no, and yet, she found herself nodding. Superheroes are safe, right?

“Alright, Spiderman, I’ll take you up on that offer.” She nodded and he felt his heartbeat a little faster.

“You’re not afraid of heights, right?” He asked and she shook her head. “Okay,” he said and wrapped a strong arm around her waist, causing Corinne to wrap her arms around his toned middle, “Hold on tight!” he laughed before shooting a web a nearby house to get into the sky, pulling them both up and away from the exasperated Lyft driver.

It took them a good 20 to 30 minutes to get out of the suburbs, but once they hit the city, Spiderman swung them through the concrete jungle, supporting her weight like it was nothing at all. He looked down at her once to see her eyes sparkling as she took in the view below them. He could get lost in the look of wonder on her face, and decided it was better for his health to keep his eyes on the road, so to speak.

“Alright, where to, miss?” he asked, coming to a stop on top of a nearby building. He let her go briefly to let her find her legs again and chuckled when she stumbled on the roof.

“Oh right,” She gave him the address, hoping he knew what she was talking about. He did, and soon enough they were off, swinging through the night once more. Pressed up against his side, she could feel every muscle in his torso stretching with his movement. God he must be ripped, she noted and her heart raced. Nice.

The rest of the time was spent in comfortable silence until Corinne pointed out her fire escape; a lush miniature garden covered one side and a fabric swinging chair hung from the platform above. Fairy lights twinkled slowly in the night Shooting his web a couple platforms up, he lowered them both onto her fire escape.

“Is this within code?” He gestured to her decorations, “Not saying I don’t like it, it looks great.” He said, taking a seat on her swing.

“Yeah, I double checked before I put them up,” She explained, “Besides, I’m not blocking the path so it’s all good.” She shrugged before opening her window and crawling through, she motioned for him to wait there. He sat patiently in the swing. Taking her home turned out to be way more tiring than he originally thought, but the feeling of a girl’s arms around him made it worth it, he decided.

A few minutes later, she came back with a plate of cookies all wrapped up, “I don’t know if you have any allergies, but I wanted to thank you for taking me home, so here.” She offered him the plate. “They’re my mom’s homemade chocolate chunk cookies.”

“Sweet!” he nodded happily, “but what about your plate?”

“You’ll just have to drop by again, my window’s always open.” She said.

“That’s not safe.” He pointed out, making her roll her eyes.

“My window’s figuratively always open, there, is that better?” He laughed. “Seriously though, if you ever need to chill or…I guess if you wanna hang out whenever you’re not out saving New York, feel free to drop by.” She said, face flushed pink in the moonlight. Did she really just ask a superhero to hang out with her? Could you get anymore lame?

“I just might take you up on that one day,” he replied, “But as for right now I’ve got…uh…a bunch of superhero things to take care of…yeah.” Smooth, Parker. Real smooth.

She smirked, “Oh yeah, gotta take care of those.”

“See you around?”

“I’ll catch you later, Spiderman.” She waved and climbed back in through her window and shut it behind her.

All she could think about that night before bed was how fucking shredded Spiderman was.  


End file.
